Printers are common peripheral devices attached to computers. A printer allows a computer user to make a hard copy of documents that are created in a variety of applications and programs on a computer. To function properly, a channel of communication is established (e.g., via a network connection) between the printer and the computer to enable the printer to receive commands and information from the host computer. Once a connection is established between a workstation and the printer, printing software is implemented at a print server to manage a print job from order entry and management through the complete printing process. The printing software may simultaneously manage in excess of thousands of print jobs that have been spooled (or queued) for production. One type of printer management is the accounting and management of printer resource consumption.
In some cases the program, such as a billing application, can generate very large files that are printed on large, high speed digital printers. In the case of transaction oriented applications, such as billing, the print output must go through an additional post-printing process to separate the file into individual documents that are then placed in envelopes and mailed to the relevant individuals. Thus, printing software may simultaneously manage in excess of thousands of print jobs that have been spooled (or queued) for production.
The printing software may also provide additional management functions, such as accounting and management of printer resource consumption. Specifically, printing entities (e.g., businesses and individuals) strive to minimize overall electrical energy consumption (i.e., usage) as an expense control, while billing customers for usage while generating the customer's print jobs. Therefore, in order for the operator of a high speed inkjet printing system to be adequately compensated for producing print jobs it is necessary to monitor resource consumption associated with a particular print job.
Currently, print engines within printing systems have the ability to report constant counter-based values on a print job basis to the printing software. These values include information such as job start/stop time, number of errors encountered, stops/starts, ink usage, and page count. Each of these items is an additive value, where a counter is kept and reported.
However some systems within a printing system are variable in that they may be on or off for different durations during the printing of a specific job. For instance, an ink dryer is a large consumer of energy within inkjet printing systems. The operation of an ink dryer may vary widely between different print jobs, making it difficult to track dryer energy consumption attributable to individual print jobs. Thus, achieving an accurate reporting for energy consumption attributable to variable systems is difficult.
Accordingly, a mechanism for monitoring energy usage associated with producing a print job is desired.